Ruben Amorim already has a template to follow to unleash £72m Manchester United signing

Both Rasmus Hojlund and Viktor Gyokeres were the subjects of big-money deals during the 2023 summer transfer window.

Hojlund joined Manchester United from Atalanta in a deal that could eventually be worth £72million and Gyokeres swapped Coventry City for Sporting Lisbon in a move that was worth north of £20m.

But based on how the 2023/24 season unfolded for each of them, you would have been forgiven had you got the price tags the wrong way round, such was the way Gyokeres' first season in Portugal developed.

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Fresh from scoring 21 goals in the Championship the season prior, Gyokeres, 26, enjoyed an outstanding first season at Sporting, scoring 43 goals in all competitions. He also chipped in with 15 assists, ending the campaign with 58 direct goal contributions in just 50 matches.

Gyokeres, who had proven during his time at Coventry that he was a striker capable of playing at a much higher level, specifically wanted to join Sporting in July 2023 because of new United head coach Ruben Amorim.

The 39-year-old had earned a reputation for developing players and Gyokeres was of the opinion that he would benefit from working with the Portuguese chief. Scoring 66 goals in 68 matches under Amorim, his theory was proven to be correct.

Since joining Sporting ahead of the start of the 2023/24 season, the Swede has scored exactly a third of the 135 league goals they have plundered since the start of last season, highlighting his importance to Amorim's system. He was prolific under the now-United boss and it will be interesting to see if he maintains such high standards in the post-Amorim era.

Gyokeres' exploits under the former Braga chief should encourage United and Hojlund. The Dane joined the club in August last year, aged 20, with the task of becoming Erik ten Hag's striker-in-chief.

Being first-choice striker at United carries huge levels of pressure and expectation for any player, meaning the task must have felt somewhat daunting for Hojlund, who had scored just 10 goals in 34 games in Italy.

Despite arriving in England injured, and then experiencing one or two other issues as the season unfolded, he finished his maiden campaign at Old Trafford with a respectable tally of 16 goals to his name. It represented a platform for him to build on this season.

However, he missed the start of this term with a hamstring injury, meaning it was not until September 21 that he made his first appearance of the campaign. He has since scored two goals in 12 appearances.

Described as a striker with 'huge potential' by Ten Hag after arriving at Old Trafford, Amorim needs to find a way of unlocking that potential on a more regular basis. Hojlund has demonstrated, both through his general play and his goals, that he does have the capacity to become a big-name player for United, but for him to make that next step he needs to become more consistent in front of goal.

Having turned Gyokeres into one of the most sought after strikers in Europe, Amorim is going to be under pressure to do the same with Hojlund. The obvious caveat, however, is that the Premier League, with respect, is a tougher and more competitive league than Liga Portugal, and the pressures that come with playing for United are much greater than at Sporting.

Nevertheless, Hojlund should be confident that he can take the next step towards becoming a seasoned goal-getter under Amorim. The 21-year-old notched 16 goals last season and his aim should be to try and beat that tally this season, although his pre-season injury has set him back in that quest.

With Amorim expected to deploy a 3-4-3 system at Old Trafford, there will be an onus on Hojlund to do much of the heavy lifting at the top end of the pitch, highlighted by the fact Gyokeres has scored 33 per cent of Sporting's league goals since the start of 2023/24.

Hojlund will no doubt be frustrated with his paltry tally of two goals so far this season, meaning he should use Amorim's appointment as motivation to find an extra gear.

Amorim needs to oversee an increase in United's overall attacking output, with scoring goals having not come naturally so far this season. If that demand results in Hojlund increasing his personal output, everyone will be smiling.